Decorative bricks, tiles or the like and methods of manufacturing the same



P 17, 1968 E. GROSKAUFMANIS 3,402,060

DECORATIVE BRICKS, TILES OR THE LIKE AND METHODS OF MANUFACTURING THE SAME Filed April 12, 1965 6094/5 f aszw w INVENTOR.

United States Patent O 20 Claims. (Cl. 117-45 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A tile, brick or like decorative building element comprises a ceramic base member which is fired, clay-coir taining, and moisture and gas-permeable. The base member has two coatings the first of which is a fired, clay and flux-containing, moisture and gas-permeable ceramic material which is bonded to at least one face of the base member. The second coating is a moisture-impermeable, hard, glass-like material having spaced-apart portions which are raised above the surface of the first coating. The spaces between the spaced-apart portions of the second coating at the surface of the first coating and between the surface of the first coating and the face of the base member are occupied by the first coating This invention relates to articles such as bricks, tiles, or the like, which are of a decorative type, and to methods for manufacturing the same.

Glazed bricks are known which have a continuous, hard, moisture-impermeable, glass-like coating on one or more surfaces thereof. Such glazed bricks are used to enhance the appearance of a building, and the glasslike coating can be self-washing. One advantage of these bricks is the uniform but varied colours Which can be obtained in the glass-like coating. However, such bricks may be subjected to frost damage due to the fact that moisture in the base member of the brick may be unable to escape through the glass-like coating. In other words, such bricks may be unable to breathe through the glass-like coating.

Bricks are available which have a discontinuous, glasslike coating on the face thereof. Such bricks have the advantage of permitting breathing through the discon tinuous coating, but with these bricks uniform colour only can be achieved if the coating is the same colour as the fired clay base member to which the coating is applied. If the base member, which usually is red, is not the same colour as the discontinuous coating, the colour of a wall or the like fabricated from such bricks will not be uniform. This problem could be overcome if it were possible to manufacture and stock bricks having base members of all different colours, but that is not a practical solution to the problem.

It is an object of this invention to provide a brick which has a face with self-washing characteristics, which is moisture-permeable, and which can have either a uniform or non-uniform appearance as far as colour in concerned, and yet which does not require the use of base members of different colours.

As article of manufacture embodying this invention may be brick, tile, or other constructional or decorative article, and comprises, a base member, a first coating and a second coating, all of the following types. The base member is a fired, clay-containing, moisture and gas-permeable, ceramic material. The first coating, which is bonded to the face of the base member, is a fired,

3,402,060 Patented Sept. 17, 1968 clay,v and flux-containing, moisture and gas-permeable, ceramic material. The second coating is a moisture-impermeable, hard, glass-like material which has spaced apart portions thereof raised above the surface of the first coating. The spaces between the spaced-apart portion of the second coating at the surface of the first coating and between the surface of the first coating and the face of the base member are occupied .by the first coating. The second coating can be referred to as being in the form of islands in lakes of the first coating.

Another aspect of this invention provides a method of manufacturing a decorative brick, tile, or the like. A clay containing base member, which upon firing can form a moisture and gas permeable ceramic base member, is coated on at le-ast one face with a continuous coating of a clay and flux-containing material adapted upon firing to form a moisture and gas-permeable ceramic coating bonded to said member. A second coating of a material adapted upon firing to form a moisture-impermeable, hard, glass-like surface is then applied to spaced apart areas of the continuous coating, and the coated article is then fired.

The invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention, taken in conjunction with the appended drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a brick embodying this invention, and

FIGURE 2 illustrates the coated face of the base member of the brick of FIGURE 1 in greater detail.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a brick 10 having coatings 11 and 12 on the front face of the base member 13 thereof. Normally coatings 11 and 12 will be provided only on the front face of the base member, since this generally is the only face which is visible when the brick is mortared in a wall or the like, but coatings 11 and 12 also may be applied to one side face of base member 13 to provide a brick for use as a corner brick.

Base member 13 is of a conventional type and may be any of the well-known fired, clay-containing, moisture and gas-permeable, ceramic materials. As exemplary only, base member 13 in its raw, i.e. unfired state, may be clays having the following compositions, all percentages being weight percentages:

(A) (For firing temperature from 1800-2000 F.

Percent Silica -60 Alumina 13-16 Iron 5-7 Lime 3-10 Magnesia 2-3 Alkalies 2-4 Weight loss during firing 8-12 (B) For firing temperature from 2000-2400 F.

Coating 11 is characterized by being a fired, clay and flux-containing, moisture and gas-permeable ceramic material. As exemplary only, the following composition is one of many compositions which will provide a coating 11 having the aforementioned characteristics after the composition has been fired:

Fluxes such as lead oxide (litharge), bo'racic acid, zinc oxide, or lithium carbonate, for example, may be used.

Coating 11 must be moisture and gas-permeable, and, to this end, the amount of flux in the composition will vary depending upon firing temperature. Generally, in order to ensure satisfactory moisture and gas-permeability characteristics in coating 11, from l5% flux by weight should be employed over the range of normal firing temperatures.

Coating 12 is characterized by being a moisture-impermeable, hard, glass-like material. As exemplary only, the following composition is one of many compositions which will provide a coating 12 having the aforementioned characteristics after the composition has been fired:

Material: Weight percent N320 CaO 2.0 PbO 14.0 ZnO 2.0 Mg'O 2.0 BaO 2.0 B 0 14.0 A1 0 7.0 Si0 51.0

Base member 13 is formed in a conventional manner, and while it is in the raw state, the composition which subsequently forms coating .11 is applied over the whole of one or more faces thereof by spraying, dipping or brushing. Following this step, the composition which subsequently forms coating 12 is applied to the coated face or faces of base member 13 by a spray 'gun or a rotating splash wheel, for example.

The amount of material which is employed to form coating 11 preferably should be such that coating 11, after firing, is not greater than 0.010 inch thick, 21 thickness of from 0.005-0.010 inch being most preferred.

The amount of material applied to subsequently form coating 12 preferably should be such that coating 12 covers from 5090% of the coated face of the base member, an area of 70% to 90% covered by coating 12 being most preferred.

It should be noted that the spreading out of the raw material for coating 12 to completely cover the raw material for coating 11 is avoided by employing a composition for coating 12 which has a high surface tension, this characteristic being contributed by such constituents as MgO and A1 0 After base member 13 has had one or more faces so coated, it is fired, and brick is thereby produced.

As an alternative to the foregoing method, base member 13 could be fired prior to the application of the coat ings thereto, but this is not a preferred method, since the coatings must then be fired, and this is inefiicient.

It will be seen from FIGURE 2 that coating 12 is in the nature of islands surrounded by lakes of coating 11. Coating 12, by virtue of its high percentage of flux, partially dissolves the composition for coating '11 to create an accelerated bonding reaction during firing, as a result of which, coating 12 is, in effect, directly bonded to the face of base member 13, assuming that coating 11 is not more than about 0.010 inch thick. Coating 11 also is bonded to the face of base member 13 during firing.

In effect, after the coated base member has been fired, there is provided a brick 10 wherein the parts of coating 12 raised above the surface of coating '11 are hard and glass-like, the coating beneath these parts is somewhat less glass-like, due to dilution by coating '11, and coating 11 is even less vitrified.

It has been found that a brick embodying this invention can readily breathe through the coated face thereof, since coating 11 is moisture and gas-permeable. However, the coated face of the brick also is self-washing because of the nature of coating 12, and to a lesser degree, of coating 11.

Coatings 11 and 12 may be coloured by the inclusion of suitable pigments for colouring ceramics. Thus, the following pigments in the indicated weight percentages may be employed:

Percent Blue-cobalt oxide 2-5 Yellow-iron oxide l-S Brown-manganese oxide l-2 Green-nickel oxide 23 Green-chrome oxide 2-4 White-zirconium silicate 7-10 The full benefit of this invention is obtained when coatings '11 and 12 are of the same colour, but coatings 11 and 12 may be in contrasting colours, if desired.

While preferred embodiments of this invention have been disclosed herein, those skilled in the art will appreciate that changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention as defined in the appended claims.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. An article of manufacture which comprises: a fired, clay-containing, moisture and gas-permeable, ceramic base member; a first coating of a fired, clay and flux-containing, moisture and gas-permeable ceramic material bonded to at least one face of said base member, the amount of said flux in said first coating being up to 15% by weight of said first coating; and a second coating of a moistureimpermeable, hard, glass-like material having spacedapart portions thereof raised above the surface of said first coating, the spaces between said spaced-apart portions of said second coating at the surface of said first coating and between said surface of said first coating and said face of said base member being occupied by said first coating.

2. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said article of manufacture is a brick.

3. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said article of manufacture is a tile.

4. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said second coating covers from 50% to of said face of said base member and said first coating covers from 50% to 10% of said face of said base member.

5. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said second coating covers from 70% to 90% of said face of said base member and said first coating covers from 30% to 10% of said face of said base member.

6. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said first and second coatings are colored in substantially the same color.

7. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said first and second coatings are colored differently.

8. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said first coating is not more than about 0.010 inch thick.

9. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said first coating is between 0.005 and 0.010 inch thick.

10. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said second coating covers from 50% to 90% of said face of said base member and said first coating covers from 50% to 10% of the face of said base member, and Wherein said first coating is not more than about 0.010 inch thick.

11. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said second coating covers from 50% to 90% of said face of said base member and said first coating covers from 50% to 10% of the face of said base member, wherein said first coating is not more than about 0.010 inch thick, wherein said article of manufacture is a brick, and wherein said first and second coatings are colored in substantially the same color.

12. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said second coating covers from 70% to 90% of said face of said base member and said first coating covers from 30% to of said face of said base member, wherein said first coating is between 0.005 and 0.010 inch thick, wherein said article of manufacture is a brick, and wherein said first and second coatings are colored in substantially the same color.

13. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said second coating covers from 50% to 90% of said face of said base member and said first coating covers from 50% to 10% of the face of said base member, wherein said first coating is not more than about 0.010 inch thick, wherein said article of manufacture is a brick, and wherein said first and second coatings are colored differently.

14. The invention according to claim 1 wherein said second coating covers from 50% to 90% of said face of said base member and said first coating covers from 50% to 10% of the face of said base member, wherein said first coating is not more than about 0.010 inch thick, wherein said article of manufacture is a tile, and wherein said first and second coatings are colored in substantially the same color.

15. An article of manufacture which comprises; a fired, clay-containing, moisture and gas-permeable, ceramic base member; a first coating of a fired, clay and flux-containing, moisture and gas-permeable ceramic material bonded to at least one face of said base member, the amount of said flux in said first coating being up to by weight of said first coating; and a second coating bonded to said face of said base member at spaced-apart areas, extending through said first coating and having spaced-apart portions thereof of a moisture-impermeable, hard, glass-like material raised above the surface of said first coating, the spaces between said spaced-apart portions of said second coating and between the surface of said first coating and said face of said base member being occupied by said first coating.

16. An article of manufacture which comprises; a fired, clay-containing, moisture and gas-permeable, ce-

ramic base member; a first coating of a fired, clay and flux-containing, moisture and gas-permeable ceramic material bonded to at least one face of said base member, the amount of said fiux in said first coating being up to 15 by weight of said first coating; and a second coating of a moisture-impermeable, hard, glass-like material, said second coating being in the form of islands extending through said first coating and bonded to said face of said base member with portions of said islands raised above the surface of said first coating; said first coating forming lakes between said islands.

17. A method of manufacturing a decorative ceramic article which comprises; coating at least one face of a clay-containing base member adapted upon firing to form a moisture and gas-permeable ceramic base member with a continuous first coating of a clay and flux-containing material adapted upon firing to form a moisture and gas permeable ceramic coating and to bond to said base member, the amount of said flux in said first coating being up to 15 by weight of said first coating; applying to spaced-apart areas of said continuous coating a second coating of a material adapted upon firing to form a moisture-impermeable, hard, glass-like material, and thereafter firing the coated article.

18. A method according to claim 17 wherein said second coating is applied to cover from to of said continuous coating.

19. A method according to claim 17 wherein not more than about 0.010 inch of said continuous coating are applied to said face of said base member.

.20. A method according to claim 17 wherein said first and second coatings are colored in substantially the same color.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 239,393 3/1881 Logan 117-70 644,530 2/ 1900 Mercer 117-37 2,327,972 8/1943 Stettinius et a1. 117-70 2,832,695 4/1958 Compton et a1. 117-70 X 3,035,937 5/1962 Baldauf et a1 117-70 X ALFRED L. LEAVITI, Primary Examiner.

A. M. GRIMALDI, Assistant Examiner. 

